A marfūʿ report is attributed to the Prophet. In explicit marfūʿ transmission, the attribution is clear: a Companion reports the Prophet’s words, describes an action, or reports conduct approved by the Prophet.
Verbal: a Companion expressly transmits a saying of the Messenger.
Practical: a Companion describes something the Prophet did in prayer or another act.
Tacit approval: an act is shown to have occurred within the Prophet’s knowledge without disapproval where objection would be relevant.
The first question is the explicit endpoint of attribution, not yet the legal ruling drawn from it. A Companion’s own practice is not automatically an explicit Prophetic action. Tacit approval also needs the appropriate contextual basis; silence cannot simply be presumed from the absence of a report.